Chickenpox
by Hermione-2113
Summary: Draco and Ginny are married. With kids. With *five* kids. With five kids with *chickenpox*. Oh, and did I mention that Draco never had it as a child?
1. Chapter 1

"Mum, Nathan won't leave me alone!"  
  
"I would, if she'd give back my broom!"  
  
"It's mine!"  
  
"Muuuuuuum!"  
  
"My head hurts!"  
  
"Ginny, could you quiet them down? I'M getting a headache."  
  
Muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum!"  
  
Ginny Malfoy shook her head ruefully, surveying the disaster scene before her, wondering where exactly she was supposed to start. Her nine year old daughter, Ruth, was holding a toy broomstick in the air, dodging six year old Nathan's attempts to grab it. Luke, three, was sprawled on the floor, clutching his blanket, other hand thrown awkwardly across his forehead. And as for the eight year old twins...there was no sound. However, Ginny reflected, this was not really a good thing. Reflecting the old adage, the longer Sara and Robyn were quiet, the louder the inevitable explosion was. And to top it all off, Draco was standing carefully halfway up the staircase, well back from the general chaos, giving Ginny a look that said, very clearly, 'Help.' Of course, he'd been an only child, she thought. Scenes like this, that were second nature to her, tended to give her husband the urge to run for the hills. With a sigh, she steeled herself, then waded into the fray.  
  
"Hey!"  
  
"Mum! Give it back!"  
  
"No. How many times have I told you that you can't play with the broom unless we're outside?" Ginny asked rhetorically, stowing the confiscated toy in the cabinet.  
  
"Dad lets us," Nathan muttered rebelliously. Ginny gave her husband an Evil Look.  
  
"Oh, he DOES, does he," she began. "Hey, I've got an idea! Why doesn't 'Dad' take you outside to play with your broomsticks?"  
  
"Yay!" called the two voices as one, before they rushed over to grab their father by the sleeves of his coat, unceremoniously dragging him out the door.  
  
"I'm going to get you for this," he mouthed over the kids' shoulders. Ginny only smiled sweetly, giving him a cheery wave, before turning back to the rest of the circus.  
  
"Luke, sweetie, do you want to go lie on your bed?"  
  
"Mum, my head hurts."  
  
"Okay, I'll take that as a 'yes'", Ginny muttered, scooping her son into her arms. He felt hot, she noticed, momentarily forgetting her frazzled nerves. She gently plucked his arm from his forehead, laying her own hand over the sweaty brow. He was hot, though he was shaking with cold. Quickly, she carried him up the stairs and into his room, placing him on his bed and sitting down beside him. Headache, fever, and yes...with a glance at Luke's stomach, partially exposed where his shirt collar turned down, she confirmed her suspicion. The toddler's fair skin was peppered with tiny red bumps.  
  
With a groan, Ginny flopped back onto the pillow herself. None of the kids had gotten it before, but it was inevitable. She herself had been four when the disease made its rounds at the Burrow. She sighed, then exited the room, vaguely remembering that she'd last seen her wand in the vicinity of the kitchen - Luke would need his temperature taken. Once she had him settled, she'd check the others over. Ginny shook her head.  
  
Let the fun begin. 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own Ruth, Sara, Robyn, Luke, Nathan...and that's about it.  
  
A/n: Thanks to nekohebi, Atepogs, Lucia Dreams, cyberchick, Wind and Ashes, Dannie7(sorry, I've already caught my niece's cold), CloakedInDarkness, Persephonie, Lily of the Shadow, a fan, Spriteth, Starr, BlackOpal(Don't blame me! Blame my Plot Bunnies!), and everyone at the S.S. Fire and Ice.  
  
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Ginny looked back for a moment, watching the toddler's chest rising and falling, both from a motherly infatuation with her offspring and a just as motherly concern for his health. Quickly, she muttered 'Nox,' grateful that they had keyed the light-spells to deactivate without a wand, then padded quietly out into the hall and down the stairs. She crossed the living room carefully, mindful that she didn't stub her toe on anything that had been abandoned on the floor. The kitchen was deserted, and she found her wand with relatively little difficulty.  
  
Entering Luke's room once again, Ginny found him already asleep. She lowered herself gingerly onto the bed - he moaned slightly, but didn't wake, and she let out the breath she'd been holding. Pointing her wand at his forehead, the tip less than inch from his damp skin, she whispered, 'Specto Febris.' The Thermometer Spell worked quickly, and his temperature registered briefly in glowing numerals on his forehead - 101.8°F. Not dangerously high, but she'd keep an eye on it. There were spells that would bring it down, but it was best to use them only when necessary. Casting a last, worried glance at her youngest, Ginny rose, then headed towards the twins' room.  
  
She rapped sharply on the wooden door, then was quiet. A muffled yelp sounded from within, followed by a thunk, then the sound of something heavy scuffing across the carpet.  
  
"Girls! Everything all right in there?"  
  
"Er - fine, mum! Just a -' another thump '-minute!'  
  
Ginny rolled her eyes and stepped back from the door. In another moment, it opened a crack, and a pert, freckled face peeped out. Her red hair was loose, so it was most likely Sara.  
  
"Did we have another accident?" Ginny inquired with a raise of her eyebrow.  
  
"No, mum, why do you ask?" Sara blinked, face the perfect picture of innocence.  
  
Ginny shook her head in defeat. "Never mind. Come on down to the living room when you get a chance."  
  
"Okay!" was the cheerful reply, and the door swung fully closed. The sound seemed unusually loud, before she realized that a door downstairs had been shut as well.  
  
"Draco? Is that you?" she called out.  
  
"Yeah, Gin. I'll be up in a minute," came the reply, and she walked to meet him at the stairs. He appeared a few seconds later, red faced and panting slightly, and she hid a grin.  
  
"Kids give you a workout?" she asked innocently.  
  
He attempted to glare at her, but ended up chuckling. "As you very well know. Ruth managed to break the Height Charm on her broom - shot up like a rocket before I could catch up to her."  
  
Ginny shook her head, unsurprised - she and Draco had a number of spells set up around the house for the children's safety, and Ruth had already found her way around most of them. (She suspected the twins had as well, but were keeping quiet about it.) "Anyway," she began as they started down the hall, "It's Luke I'm worried about. I'm almost certain he has chickenpox, and the rest aren't likely to be far behind."  
  
"Chickenpox?" he asked, looking frankly bewildered. "How did that happen?"  
  
Ginny rolled her eyes. "Draco, it's a normal occurrence. At a guess, I'd say they caught it from Sadie, but every kid winds up with it sooner or later."  
  
"Not every kid," he insisted. "I never did, after all."  
  
She stopped in mid-stride, eyeing her husband incredulously. "You NEVER had chickenpox?" He shook his head, and she groaned. "Great. Now I'm going to have to nurse SIX of you through this."  
  
He smirked, still a habit of his, and placed a hand on her shoulder patronizingly. "Ginny, dear, I am not going to get chickenpox."  
  
He continued down the hall, and with a sigh, Ginny followed, muttering under her breath, 'I will not hex my husband, I will not hex my husband, I will not hex my husband...' 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Not mine, I'm sure you're very surprised.  
  
A/n: Thanks to Atepogs, Crystal, Xela, Laina, Lucia Dreams, txt-eva, Prematurely Senile, and of course, my fellow 'shippers on the S.S. Fire and Ice. (Especially Laina, whose idea this was~_*)  
  
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Hermione's head rested in the living room fireplace. This was not an unusual occurrence, as she and Ginny often employed this means of conversation. At the moment, her disembodied head was nodding sympathetically.  
  
"I know what you mean, Gin," she said with a sigh. "It's not a dangerous disease, but it can certainly turn a household upside down. And you with five of them likely to catch it -" she shook her head ruefully. "I thought we had a rough time just with Sadie."  
  
With a groan, Ginny directed a mock-glare at the older witch. "That's comforting. Anyway, do you have any of the potion left?"  
  
Hermione nodded. "We made quite a bit more than we needed. You'll be needing five doses, right?"  
  
"Not exactly." At Hermione's quizzical look, she gave a half-smile. "Guess who never had chickenpox when he was a kid?"  
  
Hermione's mouth dropped open slightly. "Not Draco -"  
  
"Right in one," she replied. "Not surprising, really. I imagine Lucius had him succored in Malfoy Manor when the other kids were passing it around."  
  
"Makes sense. Oh well, six doses, then. I shouldn't really be Apparating in my condition -" here, she looked fondly down at her stomach, which was slightly disconcerting to Ginny, as there was a flaming log approximately where her stomach should have been "- but I'll send Severus over with it once I've got it measured out."  
  
"Thanks, Hermione," she said gratefully.  
  
"You're welcome - and good luck." At that, she disappeared, leaving only the crackling flames where she had been. Slightly relieved, Ginny sank back into the sofa.  
  
When Hermione had last called a few weeks ago, it had been her Sadie - a sweet little girl about the twins' age - with chickenpox, and she'd mentioned a potion that she and her husband had found, which alleviated the worst of the symptoms, and warded off the stronger diseases associated with it. Ginny suspected - with six cases of the spots about to break out in the house - she'd need all the help she could get.  
  
At least she'd have Draco, though. Her husband, after all, had once been an auror, and even done a stint helping her brother Charlie on the dragon preserve. He could certainly work through a little case of chickenpox. 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I own nothing remotely related to Harry Potter.  
  
A/n: Thanks to sompersun (sorry, I'm afraid there's another one this chapter...), Lucia Dreams (She *thinks* she is.), Atepogs, Persephonie, Starr (I know...I'm evil, aren't I?;}), princessflowerchild, Magi, VenusDeOmnipotent (I'm sooo sorry about AMS, but I've kind of hit a brick wall. Working on it, I promise! And this is set around ten or twelve years after book seven.), Lily of the Shadow, gohansfan, and, as always, everyone on the Fire and Ice, the best ship in the fandom!  
  
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Ginny cocked her head, listening to the distant rumble of thunder coming down the stairs. A few moments later, her suspicions were confirmed when Robyn darted into the living room, her sister close behind her. Sara's gaze immediately began to sweep around the room, before the both of them dove behind the couch. Ginny followed, ducking down.  
  
"Girls, what is going -"  
  
"Mum, shh!" hissed Sara, pulling back still further. Ginny raised a brow slightly, but decided to play along for the moment, and strolled casually back out into the center of the room. Not a second later, a disheveled Draco burst through the doorway.  
  
"All right, where did they go?"  
  
Putting a finger to her lips, Ginny pointed discreetly at the couch, while saying, "Where did who go?"  
  
"Two daughters of ours, who shall not be named, with a penchant for trouble rivaling that of their uncles," he replied, flopping down on an armchair, but still eyeing the couch, as if expecting something large and unpleasant to leap out at him from that direction - which, she had to admit, was more than a little likely.  
  
When Ginny had first told her family she was dating Draco, all of her brothers had reacted in different ways. Fred and George, unsurprisingly, had decided to treat the Malfoy invasion as a new testing platform for their pranks - and Sara and Robyn were beginning to take that same unholy delight in tormenting their father. "So, what did they do this time?" she asked, trying to hide her amusement.  
  
"Actually, this time, it wasn't intentional," he admitted. "I attempted to enter their room, and they've set up some kind of ward that bounced me down the hall as soon as I opened the door."  
  
"How on earth did they manage that?" Ginny asked, rather incredulously. Draco shrugged.  
  
"Nicked one of our wands, I shouldn't wonder."  
  
With a shake of her head, Ginny pointed her own wand at the sofa. "Wingardium Leviosa."  
  
The floral-patterned couch lifted obediently off the floor, stopping a few inches from the ceiling, to reveal two very surprised redheads. 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Still not mine.  
  
A/n: Thanks to Lucia Dreams, sabacat, Vie, babynicki811, and the S.S. Fire and Ice crew.  
  
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Draco smirked, and a drawl crept back into his voice. "Why, Gin, look what you've found! Now, how did they get there?"  
  
"I haven't the faintest," replied Ginny in much the same tone. The twins exchanged glances, and Ginny mentally reviewed their options; run for it, or try to talk their way out of it. And knowing her daughters -  
  
"Hi, mum, dad!" Sara began, plastering a jaunty smile on her face. She seemed about to add more, but she was interrupted by a soft popping sound from the center of the room.  
  
"Afternoon, Severus," Draco said, casually. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"  
  
"To the fact that my wife is in a delicate condition, which she takes as justification to use me as her delivery boy," Ginny's former professor replied dryly, making a game effort to seem as if he were put out.  
  
"I'm sure she had to twist your arm, Severus," Ginny broke in with a smile. "Not, of course, that you strictly forbade her from Apparating when she was pregnant with Sadie, and likely have again this time."  
  
He shot a glare at her, and another at Draco, who had snickered a bit at his friend's discomfiture. As he did so, his attention was drawn to the floating couch, and the two sheepish redheads underneath. His eyebrow shot up so quickly that it appeared to be under the influence of a Levitation Charm itself, and he shook his head.  
  
"I don't want to know. If I'm not mistaken, those are Weasley twins down there, and long experience has proven to me that that is a dangerous species, not to be trifled with."  
  
"Strictly speaking, they're Malfoy twins, but I get your point," remarked Draco, earning him an innocent look from Robyn.  
  
"Us, dad? And Uncle Sevvie, I'm hurt."  
  
Ginny nearly choked at the expression on the man's face at that. That particular nickname was generally tolerated from only the youngest ones, who could not yet pronounce 'Severus' correctly. Still, it grated on him, a fact which Robyn was evidently quite aware of. For a moment, Ginny was honestly afraid he would hex the child, but he settled for leveling a finger at her.  
  
"When I get you in my class..."  
  
This prompted another pair of wide-eyed Bambi looks, and he shook his head in disgust, withdrawing a small package from his robes, which he gave to Ginny.  
  
"Six doses, as requested. Enjoy your epidemic, as it were."  
  
She took it gingerly, hearing the musical clink of bottles within. "Thanks, Severus. Good luck with Hermione and the baby."  
  
He nodded, drawing his wand. With a last, incredulous look at the sofa, he quickly muttered the spell, and the room once more contained only Malfoys. 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
A/n: Thanks to VenusDeOmnipotent, Lucia Dreams, sabacat (Glad you like them ~_*), kitkat87, Magic Girl2, Sneezy Mouse, The Mauraudettes, Lily of the Shadow, Surfah (No, I'm not Sirius - my name is Lara. Okay, feeble pun aside, I happen to like Hermione/Severus. Glad you're getting used to the idea *_~), and all the Fire and Ice shippers.  
  
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The room was quiet for a moment, which was truly a monumentous occurrence in the Malfoy household, before Ginny turned back to her daughters.  
  
"Now, about these wards..."  
  
Sara gulped, and Robyn quickly broke in.  
  
"So, what are those potions for?"  
  
Ginny looked undecided, then shook her head, resigned. "All right, you're getting away with it this time, but if either one of you so much as touches a wand before you turn eleven, I'll...I'll...I'll turn you into ferrets!"  
  
The twins glanced at each other, nonplussed, and Draco gave her a mild glare.  
  
"Ginny, must you bring that up?"  
  
Despite herself, Ginny couldn't help a chuckle, but she quickly schooled her expression. "Sorry, love. Consider the subject closed."  
  
The girls obviously didn't share her opinion, however, and she was willing to bet they were mentally filing it away under 'Things to ask Uncle Ron when the parents aren't around'. They could deal with that when it came, however, and Ginny put it out of her mind, hefting the package. Glancing at the dutch door that led to the hallway, she raised her voice a bit.  
  
"Ruth, Nathan! Stop lurking and come in here."  
  
A rather surprised blonde head popped up in the window as Ruth rose from her crouch and unlocked the door, her brother following her into the room.  
  
"Sorry, mum," Nathan began rather sheepishly, before Ginny cut him off, shaking her head.  
  
"I wanted you in here anyway, you were just a bit...early. Now, about these potions..." she broke off, glancing bemusedly at her daughters. "Why don't you two come out from under there, first?"  
  
Quickly, the twins darted forward, and Ginny drew her wand. "Finite Incantatum." The spell removed, the sofa hit the floor with a resounding thump. Sara and Robyn settled down on the now-stationary couch, and Ginny nodded.  
  
"Anyway...this," she indicated the small bundle, "is your Aunt Hermione's 'Pullus Sanatio' potion."  
  
The four of them exchanged blank looks, and Ginny clarified, "It mildly alleviates the symptoms of chickenpox."  
  
There was the expected ruckus at that, and she waited for a moment for them to calm down. 


End file.
